Tirana
Tirana is the capital of Albania History Antiquity The oldest discovery in downtown Tirana was a Roman house, later transformed into an aisleless church with a mosaic-floor, dating to the 3rd century A.D., with other remains found near a medieval temple at Shengjin Fountain in the eastern suburbs. A castle possibly called Tirkan or Theranda, whose remnants are found along Murat Toptani Street, was built by Emperor Justinian in 520 A.D. and restored by Ahmed Pasha Toptani in the 18th century.5 The area had no special importance in Illyrian and classical times. In 1510, Marin Barleti, an Albanian Catholic priest and scholar, in the biography of the Albanian national hero Skanderbeg, Historia de vita et gestis Scanderbegi Epirotarum principis (The story of life and deeds of Skanderbeg, the prince of Epirotes), referred to this area as a small village.6 Middle Ages Records from the first land registrations under the Ottomans in 1431–32 show that Tirana consisted of 60 inhabited areas, with nearly 2,028 houses and 7,300 inhabitants.[citation needed] Tirana is mentioned since 1572 as Borgo di Tirana.7 In 1614, Sulejman Bargjini, a local ruler, built the Old mosque, a small commercial centre, and a hammam (Turkish bath). During this period, the Et'hem Bey Mosque, built by Molla Bey of Petrela, was constructed. It employed the best artisans in the country and was completed in 1821 by Molla's son Etëhem, who was also Sulejman Bargjini's grandnephew. In 1800, the first newcomers arrived in the settlement, the so-called ortodoksit. They were Vlachs from villages near Korçë and Pogradec, who settled around modern day Park on the Artificial Lake.8 They started to be known as the llacifac and were the first Christians to arrive after the creation of the town. After Serb reprisals in the Debar region, thousands of locals fled to Tirana. In 1807, Tirana became the center of the Sub-Prefecture of Krujë-Tirana.[citation needed] After 1816, Tirana languished under the control of the Toptani family of Krujë.[citation needed] Later, Tirana became a Sub-Prefecture of the newly created Vilayet of Shkodër and Sanjak of Durrës. Modern In 1889, the Albanian language started to be taught in Tirana's schools, while the patriotic club Bashkimi was founded in 1908. On 28 November 1912, the national flag was raised in agreement with Ismail Qemali. During the Balkan Wars, the town was temporarily occupied by the Serbian army and it took part in uprising of the villages led by Haxhi Qamili. In 1917, the first city outline was compiled by Austro-Hungarian architects.[citation needed] On 8 February 1920, the Congress of Lushnjë proclaimed Tirana as the temporary capital of Albania, which had gained independence in 1912.9 The city retained that status permanently on 31 December 1925. In 1923, the first regulatory city plan was compiled by Austrian architects.10 The centre of Tirana was the project of Florestano Di Fausto and Armando Brasini, well known architects of the Benito Mussolini period in Italy. Brasini laid the basis for the modern-day arrangement of the ministerial buildings in the city centre. The plan underwent revisions by Albanian architect Eshref Frashëri, Italian architect Castellani and Austrian architects Weiss and Kohler.[citation needed] Modern Albanian parliamentary building served as a club of officers. It was there that, in September 1928, Zog of Albania was crowned King Zog I, King of the Albanians. Tirana served as the venue for the signing, between Fascist Italy and Albania, of the Pact of Tirana. Communism In 1939, Tirana was captured by Fascist forces appointing a puppet government. In the meantime, Italian architect Gherardo Bosio was asked to elaborate on previous plans and introduce a new project in the area of present-day Mother Teresa Square.11 A failed assassination attempt was made on Victor Emmanuel III of Italy by a local resistance activist during a visit in Tirana. In November 1941, two emissaries of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia (KPJ), Miladin Popović and Dušan Mugoša, managed to call a meeting of three Albanian communist groups[citation needed] and founded the Communist Party of Albania, of which Enver Hoxha would shortly emerge as the leader. The town soon became the center of the Albanian communists, who mobilized locals against Italian fascists and later Nazi Germans, while spreading ideological propaganda. On 17 November 1944, the town was liberated after a fierce battle between the Communists and German forces.[citation needed] The Nazis eventually withdrew and the communists seized power. From 1944 to 1991, massive socialist-styled apartment complexes and factories began to be built, while Skanderbeg Square was redesigned with a number of buildings being demolished. For instance, Tirana's former Old Bazaar and the Orthodox Cathedral were razed to the ground for the erection of the Soviet-styled Palace of Culture. The northern portion of the main boulevard was renamed Stalin Boulevard and his statue was erected in the city square. Because private car ownership was banned, mass transportation consisted mainly of bicycles, trucks and buses. After Hoxha's death, a pyramidal museumwas constructed in his memory by the government.[citation needed] Prior to and after the proclamation of Albania's policy of self-imposed isolationism, a number of high-profile figures paid visits to the city, such as Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev, Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai and East German Foreign Minister Oskar Fischer. In 1985, Tirana served as the ceremonial venue of Enver Hoxha's funeral.[citation needed] A few years later, Mother Teresa became the first religious figure[citation needed] to visit the country following Albania's long declared anti-religious atheist stance. She paid respect to her mother and sister resting at a local cemetery. Starting at the campus and ending at Skanderbeg Square with the toppling of Enver Hoxha's statue, the city saw significant demonstrations by University of Tirana students, demanding political freedoms in the early 1990s. Transition On the political aspect, the city witnessed a number of events. Personalities visited the capital, such as former U.S. Secretary of State James Baker and Pope John Paul II. The former visit came amidst the historical setting after the fall of communism, as hundreds of thousands were chanting in Skanderbeg Square Baker's famous saying of "Freedom works!".[citation needed] Pope John Paul II became the first major religious leader to visit Tirana, though Mother Teresa had visited few years prior. During the Balkans turmoil in the mid-1990s, the city experienced dramatic events such as the unfolding of the 1997 unrest in Albania and a failed coup d'état on 14 September 1998. In 1999, following the Kosovo War, Tirana Airport became a NATO airbase, serving its mission in the former Yugoslavia. Starting in 2000, former Tirana mayor Edi Rama (mayor from 2000 to 2011) under the Ilir Metagovernment, undertook a campaign to demolish illegal buildings around the city centre and along the Lana River banks to bring the area to its pre-1990 state. In an attempt to widen roads, Rama authorized the bulldozing of private properties so that they could be paved over, thus widening streets. Most main roads underwent reconstruction, such the Ring Road (Unaza), Kavaja Street and the main boulevard. Rama led the initiative to paint the façades of Tirana's buildings in bright colours (known as Edi Rama colours – very bright pink, yellow, green, violet) although much of their interiors continued to degrade. Rama's critics claimed that he focused too much attention on cosmetic changes without fixing any of the major problems such as shortages of drinking water and electricity.1314 A richer calendar of events was introduced and a Municipal Police force established. Since 2005 the southeast region of Tirana, mainly Farke and Petrela has had a burst becoming the preferred destination with many residence complexes being built and having the current biggest mall in Albania, the Tirana East Gate (TEG).1516 In 2007, U.S. PresidentGeorge W. Bush marked the first time that such a high ranking American official visited Tirana.17 A central Tirana street was named in his honor. In 2008, the Gërdec explosions were felt in the capital as windows were shattered and citizens shaken. On 21 January 2011, Albanian police clashed with opposition supporters in front of the Government building as cars were set on fire, three persons killed and 150 wounded.18 Present-day In the 2015 municipality election, power was transferred from the Democratic Party representative Lulzim Basha, to the Socialist Party candidate Erion Veliaj.19 The country underwent a territorial reform, which unified communes with municipalities leaving 61 of them.20 Thirteen of Tirana's communes were integrated as administrative units joining the existing eleven.21 Since then, Tirana is undergoing major changes in law enforcement and new projects as well as continuing the ones started by his predecessor. In their first few council meeting 242 social houses got allocated to needing families.22 Construction permits were suspended until the capital's development plan is revised and synthesized.21 In addition the municipality will audit all permits granted in the previous years. The architect Stefano Boeri was contracted to work on the General Urban Plan of Tirana (TR030), which makes a series of interventions to the city's infrastructure. The plan was submitted for approval to the Municipality Council in November 2016.23 Geography Topography Tirana is located in the central part of Albania, about 32 kilometers (20 mi) inland. Its average altitude is 110 meters (360 ft) above sea level and its highest point measures 1,828 metres (5,997 feet) at Mali me Gropa. The city is mostly surrounded by hills, with Dajti Mountain on the east and a slight valley opening on the north-west overlooking the Adriatic Sea in the distance. By road the city is 700 kilometres (430 miles) north of Athens, 290 km (180 mi) west of Skopje, 250 km (160 mi) south-east of Pristina and 160 km (99 mi) south of Podgorica. The Tiranë river runs through the city, as does the Lanë stream. Tirana has four artificial lakes, the Tirana Artificial Lake around which was built the Grand Park, Paskuqani Lake, Farka Lake, Tufina Lake and other smaller lakes or reservoirs. The present municipality was formed at the 2015 local government reform by the merger of the former municipalities Baldushk, Bërzhitë, Dajt, Farkë, Kashar, Krrabë, Ndroq, Petrelë, Pezë, Shëngjergj, Tirana, Vaqarr, Zall-Bastar and Zall-Herr, that became municipal units. The seat of the municipality is the city Tirana.24 Tirana is surrounded by the Dajti Mountains on the east also on the southern and the western part of the city. The Dajti Mountain's highest peak is at 1,613 metres (5,292 feet). In winter, the mountain is often covered with snow and is a popular retreat to the local population of Tirana that rarely sees snow falls. Its slopes have forests of pines, oak and beech, while its interior contains canyons, waterfalls, caves, a lake, and an ancient castle. The park has a surface area of 29,384 hectares, is highly frequented by day and considered the Natural Balcony of Tirana. The mountain can be reached through a narrow asphalted mountain road onto an area known as Fusha e Dajtit. From this small area there is an excellent view of Tirana and its plain. This is the reason this place has been named as the Balcony of Tirana. Climate Under the Köppen climate classification, Tirana has a humid subtropical climate (Cfa), and receives just enough summer precipitation to avoid Köppen's (Csa) Mediterranean climateclassification, since every summer month has more than 40 millimetres (1.6 in) of rainfall,25 with hot and moderately dry/humid summers and cool and wet winters. Some snow falls almost every winter, but it usually melts quickly. The city is ranked in the Top 10 of the sunniest cities in Europe with a total of 2544 hours of sun.4 Tirana lies on the boundary between Zone 7 and Zone 9 in terms of the hardiness zone.26 Environment In September 2015, Tirana organized its first vehicle-free day, joining forces with numerous cities across the globe to fight against the existing problem of urban air pollution. This initiative resulted in a considerable drop in both air and noise pollution, encouraging the Municipality to organize a vehicle-free day every month. According to a 2016 report published by the National Environmental Agency, air pollution in Tirana dropped by 15%, compared to the previous year.[citation needed] The city suffers from problems related to overpopulation,30 such as waste management, high levels of air pollution and significant noise pollution. Over the last decades, air pollution has become a pressing concern as the number of cars has increased. These are mostly 1990s and early 2000s diesel cars,31 while it is widely believed that the fuel used in Albania contains larger amounts of sulfur and leadthan in the European Union. Another source of pollution are PM10 and PM2.5 inhaled particulate matter and NO2 gases3233 resulting from rapid growth in the construction of new buildings and expanding road infrastructure.34 Untreated solid waste is present in the city and outskirts. Additionally, there have been complaints of excessive noise pollution. Despite the problems, the Grand Park at the Artificial Lake has some effect on absorbing CO2 emissions, while over 2.000 trees have been planted around sidewalks. The work of four new parks has started in the summer of 2015 located Kashar, Farkë, Vaqarr, and Dajt. These parks are part of the new urban plan striving to increase the concentration of green spaces in the capital.35 The government has included designated green areas around Tirana as part of the Tirana Greenbelt where construction is not permitted or limited.3637